Well, of course I could. After all, I used to work in media—stirring up public opinion was my specialty.
Too bad the first time I went crazy and exposed her affair with Noel, she threatened the company into firing me, citing privacy violations and defamation.
These days, finding someone willing to help wasn't easy.
I shot her a sideways glance, long past feeling any grievance over being misunderstood.
I continued wrapping the memorial gift for John's anniversary.
"You should know your dirty laundry doesn't end with what's already public. If I wanted to expose more, you'd be hemorrhaging again."
She stood frozen in the doorway for a long moment.
Her voice came out almost resigned.
"After this, I'll cut things off with him. But promise me—we'll live properly from now on, okay? Once the baby comes, we'll be a happy family."
Words like these—she'd said them nearly every day during her pregnancy.
Didn't stop her from staying tangled up with Noel.
One day it was pity for his illegitimate status. The next, sympathy for how alone he was without family.
There was always a reason—a million reasons—for her "helpless" attraction to him, for helping his career take off.
She stayed planted in the doorway, as if she wouldn't leave until I answered.
Watching her block out the sunlight, I gave a half-hearted agreement just to be done with it.
It wasn't until the next morning—when an uncensored video of me "cheating" went viral—that I understood what she'd meant by after this.
Greta released a clarification video.
In it, she wept for the cameras, telling the media that her brother-in-law had caught me cheating during her pregnancy. That I'd lashed out first, spreading false rumors about her to cover my own sins.
Noel chimed in, grief-stricken, claiming he'd only tried to stop me from hurting Greta's feelings—but I'd assumed he would expose my affair and sought revenge.
The internet screamed for Greta to divorce this "gold-digger" immediately.
But she played the devoted wife.
"No matter what mistakes Bob makes in this lifetime, I can't stop loving him."
Watching her sickening performance, I couldn't hold it back. I threw up.
Greta heard from outside and rushed in.
"What's wrong?"
I frowned, watching Noel trail in behind her, and shook off her hand.
"Nothing. Just disgusted by you." My voice was flat. "Willing to destroy your husband's reputation to protect your affair. Greta, your love really is something."
Her face went chalk-white. She opened her mouth to explain.
But Noel suddenly dropped to his knees.
"I'm sorry, Bob—it's all my fault! She only made you the scapegoat to protect me. But she's still recovering from childbirth, and she was so worried you'd be angry that she came to explain despite her health. Please don't blame her."
Greta's eyes filled with tender concern—for him. She turned an accusing glare on me.
"I came to tell you about this. That video was AI-generated. When it comes down to it, he's your brother—sacrificing yourself to help him is only right. And me helping him? That's helping you maintain your blood ties. Why do you have to be so aggressive toward him?"
She wasn't finished.
"Besides, you're unemployed. Reputation means nothing to you. Strangers can talk all they want—it won't change how I feel about you. I know the video is fake, and that's enough. But he's different. He has no one. His entire livelihood depends on media work. If his image is ruined, he loses everything."
Listening to her self-righteous justifications, all I felt was revulsion.
Unemployed. And whose fault was that?
Back then, she hadn't just pressured the company into firing me. She'd put the word out across the entire industry: anyone who hired me was making an enemy of her.
Interview after interview, I hit walls. When I finally landed a position at a small private studio, she filed malicious reports against us.
In the end, every single one of my media credentials was revoked. Just like that, I became the industry pariah everyone loved to hate.
